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Land of Water (Njalm)
Considered nothing less than the most inhospitable of the five great nations, the Land of Water has seen more strife and bloodshed than any other nation. Wars have been waged between civilians for generations, and some of them still rage on even to this very day. Foreigners often attribute the great unrest in the nation to corrupt officials, leaders and the great deal of crime which happens inside its borders. But the truth is much different to those who live in the Land of Water. In fact, there are very few alternatives; the environment kills those who do not actively fight to survive, and a single scrap of bread is often all it takes to doom or save a family. Food is scarce in most areas and the inhabitants are usually far too poor to get by. This results in high crime rates, and civil wars, where the aggressors and defenders are typically ordinary people from different neighbourhoods who either want to reclaim lost food, or take it from others. Usually by force. These aforementioned events earned the Land of Water a new name, a name more often used by its ordinary residents; the Land of Tears. As most know, the land of water is composed of dozens of different islands, each of which often have radically different climates and ecosystems - in some places, the difference between one island and the next are so great so as to make people believe that they've entered another nation altogether. Its not uncommon to see an arid desert island as little as one or two nautical miles from an island with arctic temperatures. Islands like these, which typically have high mountainous regions are believed to contribute much to the fact that the land of water finds itself plagued by violent hurricanes quite often. Usually at least once each week, the casualties vary, but its not uncommon for especially violent storms to take several dozen lives in a single day. The 36 Numbers There are precisely 36 inhabitated islands in the Land of Water. These islands vary greatly in population, environment and climate. The numbers representing the hospitality of every individual isle, with number 36 being the absolute worst island to live on, while number 1 is an island more commonly known as Kirigakure; the dream of every desperate family in the entire nation. Among all these islands, only a certain few are named, and those are the isles numbered 1 to 6, as those are considered to be the absolute best places to live. However, only full-fledged Shinobi are permitted to live on these islands, and it is for this reason that the Land of Water has a disproportionally large military power in spite of its average population. These islands are divided into seven regions, with each region being composed of multiple smaller islands. These islands are typically governed by a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the mist, except in certain cases where the Kage lacks both trust and faith in the swordsmen. Each of the seven swordsmen hail from one of these regions, and once accepted into their ranks, the new swordsman is granted control over the region from which they came. This is the traditional method, and most would say the best option both politically and in regards to the military. Flora & Fauna Due to the enormous variety between the 36 main islands, the flora and fauna of the land of water is without question the most diverse and varied in the entire world. The animals and plants that thrives in these environments often reflect the world they exist in, with both plant and beast often being extremely dangerous. Among these plants are A Mother's Sorrow, Maiden Tears, Wolfbane and Heroes' Bane. To merely live is an impressive feat within the land of water. While land-dwelling animals are scarce, those few that do exist all pose a threat to human venturing too close to their territories, as they've adapted to live in these hellish conditions. Mostly humans take great care to avoid them, only rarely miustering their bravery when motivated by hunger. Many of these animals are larger versions of other species, and they usually grow huge due to island gigantism. Its estimated that around two-thirds of these animals are carnivores, and these animals actively hunt humans as prey, with a few species of animals even specializing in catching humans. While in some places, evolution in land-dwelling animals have stopped, the marine life of the land of water is constantly changing and evolving, and it has a greater variety of aquatic creatures and lifeforms than any other place in the known world. Many of these creatures, like their land-dwelling cousins pose a great threat to humans, whether it is by venom, teeth, claw or size, many creatures of the Great Ocean are fully capable of, and frequently willing to kill humans. Examples of particularly deadly creatures are the Kaolu: massive sea serpents that fast on sea farers. Even trained shinobi are wary of these creatures for their chitinous scales, which are known to repel even ninjutsu attacks. Besides on sea, these creatures can topple a ship with little effort. The smaller variants of the kaolu are known to dwell within the rivers at the larger islands in the Water. Despite being smaller than the ocean kaolu, they are just as ferocious.". Besides, while on sea, such creatures can topple a ship with few issues. Smaller variants of the kaolu are known to dwell within the rivers of the larger islands in the land of water, and though they are much smaller than the ocean kaolu, they're just as ferocious. Octopi are also quite common, most of these are harmless and are regularily caught by the inhabitants for food. With one of the main exports in regards to seafood being the tender flesh of these creatures. Octopi occur only very rarely in foreign waters, and therefore the land of water has all but monopolized their trade. However, octopi come in many different sizes, the smallest are so small that they might be confused for small fish at first, whereas the biggest are large enough to topple seafaring vessels and wreak havoc on shoreside villages and settlements. Thankfully, the larger species of octopi very rarely come to the surface, and they're generally considered much less of a threat to seafarers than the kaolu. While most outsiders are aware of the dangers within the seas of the Waters; with it primarily being the Kaolu, few outsiders know the true threat of the sea. This danger can directly be found right at the coast of Kirigakure. The water is the home to thousands of different species of the jellyfish. And, unbeknownst to most foreigners this is the exact reason why Kirigakure was founded at that island. It is the surrounding the village that is the prime breeding ground for these animals, which would make settling down there seem unreasonable. Because the jellyfish kills by envenoming their prey. Their venom is sometimes immensely potent, easily capable of taking human lives. Even if the venom on its own isn’t strong enough, the researchers in Kirigakure are nonetheless capable of mixing these together to achieve great results. Due to how all venomous species of the jellyfish are native to the land of water, very few outsider of Kirigakure are aware of how their venom operates. And so, the existence of antidotes are limited, with those in existence of all being accounted for by the shinobi that manufacture potent poison from their venom. . The People As one would expect of the inhabitants of a place as unforgiving as the land of water, the people living there are desperate. With most living in poverty, the inhabitants of the 30 farther islands are dangerous to visitors, many of them would think little of killing someone to loot them of their money and belongings. Though most would prefer to resolve this by coercion rather than violence. To those living in the slums, there is little hope of a better life, and at most, all they can do is get by. At least, it used to be so before Fuyuki came to power. With the Mizukage frequently sending rain to most of the islands to increase the fertility of the crops. However, while their lives have improved under his rule, something which they usually acknowledge, the only true way to live a fulfilled if likely short life is to join the Academy of Kirigakure. The Shinobi Academy is one of the largest buildings in the entire village, with it having been established in a massive castle that once belonged to the Water Daimyo. Unlike pretty much any other shinobi village, the academy of Kirigakure accepts people of all age groups, and being a shinobi grants great prestige and wealth; and while in the academy each attendant is granted a monthly stipend of several thousand ryo, which, while a rather small amount of money is likewise considered a fortune to those once stricken by poverty. Many family members, young and old choose to join the academy to become shinobi in order to provide for their families. For this reason, Kirigakure commands great military strength, and the education system to become a shinobi in Kirigakure is noteworthily advanced compared to other villages. Because most of its people is used to living in harsh conditions, most of them are largely unafraid of shinobi training and almost all attendants survive to become shinobi. One could say that the brutal environment in which they were raised has served to mold the residents of the land of water into natural shinobi, and most barely even flinch at the thought of torture or psychological warfare. Their ethics having been cast aside long ago, thus, one can expect Kiriga Shinobi to undertake even the most demeaning and gruesome of missions without hesitation, for them, all that matters is that such missions often tempt with a bigger paycheck. Kiriga Shinobi are also known for their resistance to torture, as for they whom are used to live in a nation where the very nature around them actively punishes them for waking up in the morning, torture is little but an unusually painful nuisance.